Not long after the conversation Bruno had with the King of Bulgaria and his teenager daughter, Bruno found himself sitting in the Bulgarian Royal Palace, along with a variety of the world’s most important men. From the leaders of the Central Powers, at least those outside of the east, to the King of Bulgaria and his generals.
The room had men who would shape the course of history, sitting civilly across from one another, discussion an end to hostilities in Bulgaria which was currently under occupation by the German and Austro-Hungarian Armies.
King Constantine was listing out his demands, which were more or less composed of the Thracian lands that Bulgaria currently held in its south. Normally Greece, or should I say their King would have been happy with such gains, and concluded the peace talks there.
But Constantine had lost a son, inadvertently, because of Ferdinand’s actions. And he wanted Ferdinand’s head. Somehow he had to blame for this tragedy that forced Bulgaria into its current state, and the King of Greece would not be happy without his pound of flesh.
Ferdinand was rather resigned. His army had no means to fight any longer, and even if they did, the suffering his people would have endured would have been too much for him to possibly tolerate. He was not a ruthless man, nor a man without a care for others.
He recognized that he had made a mistake by supplying the ultra-orthodox ethnic nationalists in the Balkans, his goal was not to target Greece, but rather to weaken the Ottoman Empire, an act that backfired spectacularly and in fact, resulted in him being allied, albeit only for a mere 72 hours, with the Empire who he despised above all.
Because of this, he stopped Constantine who was in mid rant, practically frothing at the mouth as he did so.
“You can cease with your words, Constantine. I admit that the fault is my own, and will take full responsibility for the death of your son, which for the record was never an intention of mine. If ceding the disputed territories between our two kingdoms, and giving my life is enough to appease your anger so that the people of Bulgaria need not suffer any longer, then so be it.
My eldest son is old enough to succeed me, and it is time I face judgement for my sins…”
Constantine was surprised, as were several others of the monarchs present that Ferdinand would go this far. And though Constantine had stated the words that he expected Ferdinand to pay with his life for the death of the Greek Prince, he was flabbergasted that the man had accepted the burden without resistance.
He was about to agree to this request when Bruno stepped forward and offered his thoughts on the matter.
“You will most certainly be judged for your sins, Ferdinand, as we all will the day we meet our father in heaven. But that day is not today… You are no more at fault for the death of the Greek Prine as I am… Who is to say that the weapons wielded by the Ultra-Orthodox were entirely of Bulgarian origin?
If memory serves correctly, corporations which I am at least the partial owner of supplies weapons, munitions, and ordnance to the Balkan League during the wars that took place in this region of the world just a few years prior.
Many of those weapons have ended up in the hands of the militant groups which fight over ethnicity and religion today. The war has been one, and tens of thousands of Bulgaria’s men have paid the price owed to Greece with their blood.
If Ferdinand is to walk the gallows, then I too bear the same blame and will meet my maker today alongside him… Tell me Constantine, do you have the nerve to demand my death in repayment for your son’s unfortunate demise?”
The three emperors in the room eyed one another with a silent understanding. Meanwhile, Constantine grew furious when he heard what Bruno had said, but bit his tongue as he knew better than to speak in this moment.
Only Ferdinand did not fully understand what was happening, and tried his best to dissuade Bruno from risking his own neck for his sake.
“Generalfeldmarschall, my generals have told me the grace which you acted with when you accepted our surrender, and the time you have spent in my home these last few weeks has shown me your character is greater than I have ever understood.
There is no reason for you to put your life on the line in a vain attempt to save a guilty man like me! Please recant your words before it is too late!”
Bruno simply shook his head and denied this request, knowing that his selfless façade would win him major points with the Kingdom of Bulgaria, and especially its family going forward. Putting all of his greatest acting skills to the test, he placed his hand on the shoulder of the Bulgarian King and assured the man that he stood with him.
“As I said, you are no more guilty of this unfortunate accident than I am. And if you are to be judged guilty for these crimes, then so will I. Let us go to God together my friend…”
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Wilhelm had every urge to roll his eyes at Bruno’s obvious lies. And he was not alone in this regard. As Nicholas and Franz, Joseph also understood Bruno’s character well enough that he would never risk his own neck for the sake of another man, as his family came above all else.
But Ferdinand was not so well accustomed to Bruno’s nature and genuinely believed the man was actually putting his life on the line to save him. Constantine however wanted more than anything to scream and call Bruno’s bluff. Because that was what it was, but he couldn’t.
To do so would be to condemn himself, and his Kingdom in the eyes of the three Eagles staring at him with ravenous eyes from above. You see, Greece was a minor power, who had joined with Germany, Austro-Hungary, and Russia as an opportunist.
The combined might of the Hellenic Armed Forces, and the entirety of the Kingdom of Greece, its manpower, and natural resources was worth far less in their eyes than one man in the eyes of these Emperors, and that man was Bruno von Zehntner.
Bruno was a man whose military talent rivaled history’s greatest conquerors, his worth could not be explained in monetary value as he was a man who appeared once every few hundred years. On top of this, Bruno also appeared to be an impeccable statement, and had a mind for engineering that few possessed today.
He was a figure which all three of these emperors desired to bring closer to their families. They would sooner cast Greece out of the Central Powers than agree to let Constantine execute him. Bruno knew this as did everyone else in the room other than Ferdinand.
And because of this, his single bluff had completely negated the unnecessary demands of the Greek King. In addition to this, Bruno pointed out that enough blood had been shed to avenge the loss of a single Prince.
Greece’s gains in Thrace should be enough to satisfy their greed, and anything more would not be agreed upon by their far more fearsome backers. Thus, Bruno did two things on this day. He ensured that Greece’s gains were limited to what he desired them to have, and also built a reputation within the Bulgarian Royal Family as an honest, god fearing man.
As well as making them owe him a major favor in the long run. One that could be called upon in the future should Germany find itself once more in need of capable allies. Although, Bruno underestimated just how much he had impressed the Bulgarian King, or the extent to which his actions would have on the lasting friendship between their houses going forward.
After all, Bruno quite frequently had a bad habit of misunderstanding the lengths of which humans could go to show their gratitude. As he came from an era where such things were an increasingly small occurrence.
This was not the apathetic, selfish, wicked, and degenerate world he had been born into. But one where honor, integrity, loyalty, and a man’s word were meaningful concepts to the overwhelming majority of people in this world.
And Bruno would come to find this out soon enough. As within the next few months, the Bulgarian Royal Family would extend its greetings to both Bruno himself, and his family who were safely residing in Berlin.
Thus the war in Bulgaria came to an end as quickly as it had begun, and Bulgaria having ceded the disputed territories to Greece now allowed for a double front to break out in Eastern Thrace.
In doing so, the Central Powers could now encircle the Ottoman Army or what remained of it in the region, allowing Bruno to march upon Constantinople and force the enemy to concede once and for all.